A DRUG that could slow the progress of Alzheimer's disease is being denied to patients in Watford and Three Rivers.

Those affected by the degenerative disease cannot get the drug Ebixa on the NHS because of a ruling by Watford and Three Rivers Primary Care Trust and other PCTs across the county.

They also cannot buy it privately, despite the fact that several other trusts in the UK do supply it.

Ebixa has been licensed since 2002 and has been used in countries such as Germany for more than ten years it is not a cure but it is claimed it can slow the symptoms, which include memory loss and inability to carry out everyday tasks.

The NHS cost for a 28-day supply of the 10mg tablets is about £75, private patients could pay about £50 but decisions on drug availability in Hertfordshire are made by primary care trusts (PCTs).

A spokesman for the Watford and Three Rivers PCT said: "When making a decision over whether a certain drug is prescribed for a given condition in this case Ebixa (Memantine) for Alzheimer's the committee looks at all the clinical evidence and makes their decision as to whether the drug will be prescribed by comparing it to other drugs that are already available for that condition.

"If the evidence shows that the drug in question has no clinical advantages over what is already available then the drug will not be prescribed."